Big Data: Making sense of the numbers

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1 EXPERT INSIGHTS Big Data: Making sense of the numbers Big Data is about collecting all the information that comes in from multiple sources, analysing it and using it to inform decision-making. This can make your travel planning easier, cheaper and more effective as travel technology expert Fiona Reilly of Travelport explains.

2 1 If there is one thing that s plentiful at the moment, it s data. We ve produced more data in the last few years than in all of human history and we re doubling it every two years. But it s not only the volume that s expanding. So too is the complexity of the data sets being analysed. And, with the insight the data sets offer, we are rapidly learning to spot new business trends, determine the quality of research, prevent diseases and even combat crime. In fact, very few industries remain untouched by the power of Big Data and travel is no exception. Fiona Reilly Fiona is Commercial Director of Travelport, a leading provider of travel technology for the travel industry and ATPI s chosen technology partner for over 20 years. With over 30 years experience, 16 of them at Travelport, Fiona has worked in almost every area of the travel industry. What this insight will tell you What Big Data is and how it can it be utilised The influence of Big Data on the future of corporate travel programmes How you can put Big Data to work

3 2 Information is powerful The amount of information available for a travel manager to use to support their travel programme is vast. Travel management companies (TMCs) typically generate and deal with two types of Big Data. 1: Huge volumes of booking and profile data about your own travellers. You may not be using this data to its full potential currently, but this information is generated none the less. 2: The vast amount of information produced by travel companies around the world every day, such as search, booking and itinerary details. All of this can be used to support your travellers as you can gain a clearer understanding of their buying patterns, how much in advance they book their travel and the type of hotels they book. The production of data by your travel management company will depend on them having handled the booking in the first place. If travellers or bookers visit airline or hotel websites to make their bookings then you won t have access to comprehensive data. 10 million tracked daily There are 8,400 passengers taking to the air every minute, or around 12 million a day. Taking 20% off for seats that go empty, and you re still talking about almost 10 million passengers travelling each day. That creates an awful lot of data.

4 3 Big numbers Travelport processes up to 1.2 billion itineraries every day, with over 50 million bookings live in the system at any one time Each booking could be accessed two to three times a day With Big Data technology, we can now start to analyse this in real time, identifying key patterns and trends It should, for example, be possible for you to gain a much better understanding of the behaviour of your travellers around the world When you better understand your travellers you have the knowledge to be able to offer a truly personalised experience, making it easier for the traveller to book travel that both meets their needs and keeps them within the agreed travel policy You can also benchmark fare deals obtained with airlines vs. prices made available in the market by other carriers for the same routes, and assess the average spend on ancillary services in comparison with your travellers Make use of your TMC Your TMC account manager really is the key to making sense of reporting. They can give you sample airfares to help budget for a new project, and explain the differences in ticket flexibility and refund charges.

5 4 Into the future Technology is moving at such a rapid pace. What is on the horizon for travel data and how will this change how we operate a corporate travel programme? An interesting aspect of data is that it s a constant evolution. It s not just about the data and specific content within it, it s also about how the data is structured, how it s delivered and how quickly it s delivered to various systems. Costs and benefits Future travel costs are usually managed in one of two ways: Supplier contract negotiations (to govern unit pricing). Demand management (what is being purchased against actual need). But corporate objectives are not uniform data analysis can be used to find cost savings, and also to improve the traveller experience. The benefit of technology innovation is that you can keep a record of all data there s no need to aggregate or summarise it before storing it away (e.g. for auditing). The speed at which you can analyse data and find patterns is also increasing, enabling travel managers to enforce policy in more fluid ways than ever before.

6 5 Putting Big Data to work A few examples of how you could use big data in your travel programme - there are many so get in touch with your TMC to ensure you re making the most of the information available to you: Pre-trip reporting for duty of care, to highlight (for example) if people are booked to high risk countries, or multiple employees on the same flight Pre-trip reporting to identify missing data on invoicing for better quality invoices Analysis of your booking patterns, to increase advance bookings and gain better fares/rates Analysis of your hotel programme, to identify whether your preferred properties have been utilised and if your programme rates have been applied Budgets and forecasting, for example information such as the average fare inflation rate over a period of time Benchmarking your travel programme with your peers to identify areas of improvement, both in regards to policy but also value At Travelport we concentrate on all aspects of data so that customers can make the full use of their own data in the quickest and most efficient way. Our investment in and development of technology is continuing Big Data won t be going away any time soon. Make contact Contact ATPI to find out more about how we manage big data and provide management information to inform travel programmes: [email protected] Read more expert insights at the ATPI Knowledge Hub

7 6 About the expert Fiona Reilly, Commercial Director, Travelport Fiona is Commercial Director of Travelport, a Travel Commerce Platform providing distribution, technology, payment and other solutions for the $7 trillion global travel and tourism industry. With a presence in over 170 countries, approximately 3,400 employees and 2013 net revenue of $2.1 billion, Travelport is comprised of: A Travel Commerce Platform through which it facilitates travel commerce by connecting the world s leading travel providers with online and offline travel buyers in a proprietary business to business ( B2B ) travel marketplace. In addition, Travelport has leveraged its domain expertise in the travel industry to design a pioneering B2B payment solution that addresses the needs of travel intermediaries to efficiently and securely settle travel transactions. Technology Services through which it provides critical IT services to airlines, such as shopping, ticketing, departure control and other solutions, enabling them to focus on their core business competencies and reduce costs. With over 30 years experience, 16 of them at Travelport, Fiona has worked in almost every area of the travel industry.

8 ATPI is among the world s leading travel management companies. Our dynamic and innovative approach to savings and service has earned us one of the highest client retention rates in the industry. With over 100 offices worldwide, the company has successful operations in corporate travel, corporate event management, online travel technology and specialist travel management for a number of key industries. Published: 01.15